Years ago I recall reading from the pulpit at a Friday night
service the names of beloved departed from the Yahrzeit list of that week
prepared by our office. Inadvertently, the secretary had listed the name of a
living son instead of the departed father. The member who was present at
services with his two children heard his own name read before the Kaddish. You can imagine how embarrassing the mistake
might have been.
He wrote me a letter and I quote a portion of it: “My boys
and I were shocked; I almost missed saying Kaddish. As you can imagine, all kinds of thoughts ran
through my mind. Standing with my
children and hearing my own name to be mourned at our Temple made me suddenly
think of the future. I thought to
myself: Will my boys actually respect the traditions of our religion and
observe Kaddish for me? I wondered if I
shall have deserved the same love and respect that my father and I shared. Finally, I recalled that the Kaddish was
originally recited as a mark of respect for learning and teachers. I realize now that my responsibility is not
to command love and respect, but to teach my boys, stressing ethics, esteem of
others, moderation, and preparation for life.
Thank you for the unintentional error.”
-Rabbi Hillel Silverman
Comments